Losing his arbitration hearing in 2009, the tall and slender 26-year-old was awarded $3 million rather than his request for $3.3 million so the Rays wouldn't break the bank.
He and Carl Crawford then became the first teammates in big league history to surpass 60 extra-base hits and 40 steals in the same season. Upton is also the only player in baseball with at least 100 doubles and 100 steals since 2008.
Don't let those numbers fool you, though. Upton hit 18 homers and drove in only 62 runs over 154 games last year, striking out 164 times while batting just .234... which allotted him a $1.8 million raise. However, he did nail 38 doubles and steal 42 bases in 51 attempts for the American League East champions.
Either way, he'll have the glory all to himself now, as Crawford hit the road last month for greener pastures: a $142 million, seven-year contract with the Boston Red Sox.
[Tampa Tribune on Twitter]
2 comments:
A $1.8 million raise for the so-so season he had? Unreal.
Check out the look on his face. Even he knows he doesn't deserve that kind of money. There's a lot of potential in Upton, just haven't seen him play to it yet.
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